


Newfound Family

by LyriaBlackFrost



Series: Fic Requests [29]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: AU - Goro joins the team earlier, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Mutual Support, Phantom Thieves of Hearts as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:36:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26307196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LyriaBlackFrost/pseuds/LyriaBlackFrost
Summary: Despite trying to keep those feelings for themselves, it’s obvious that Goro and Ryuji aren’t too fond of each other. However, a complicated mission in Mementos affects both of them, leading them to finally have a proper conversation, and understand each other better.
Relationships: Akechi Goro/Sakamoto Ryuji
Series: Fic Requests [29]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1141385
Comments: 9
Kudos: 76





	Newfound Family

**Author's Note:**

> Requested by an anon. I hope you like it! :)

As soon as Goro joined the Phantom Thieves while they explored Okumura’s palace, he could tell Ryuji didn’t trust him.

He had been honest about his past and his connection to Shido, as well as wanting to leave it all behind him. Such honesty made the majority of the group believe and accept him as one of their own, despite all of his past mistakes—even Futaba, who made it very clear that she couldn’t forgive him for the death of her mother, was willing to give him a chance.

But Ryuji… Even if he agreed to have him in their group, he didn’t try to hide how much he disliked Goro. To be fair, though, that feeling was mutual: Ryuji was too loud, impulsive, and hot-headed for his taste, and sometimes Goro had to hold himself back not to yell at him to just shut up.

Despite their clear distaste for each other, however, the two of them managed to keep their feelings for themselves, fighting together in the Metaverse and aiding each other whenever necessary. Goro was glad that, despite his usual attitude, Ryuji seemed to be mature enough to understand that they had the same goal as Phantom Thieves, and their personal feelings shouldn’t stay in their way.

Things started to change that afternoon, when Yuuki Mishima gave them a new target: a man so abusive toward his family that it led to his older daughter attempting suicide. Thankfully, her mother drove her to the hospital in time, but her younger brother said in his request that, as long as that man stayed the same, his sister wouldn’t be safe—neither of them would.

That request made something stir uncomfortably inside Goro, and the feeling only became worse as they made their way deeper into Mementos, until they found the shadow they were looking for. The man seemed more annoyed than guilty over his daughter’s pain, and that was enough confirmation that there was no other option but a change of heart.

The group acted as soon as the shadow’s true nature manifested itself. It used mostly magic, but could also attack with quick movements if it got close enough to its target, so the best strategy was to keep their distance as much as possible.

Goro tried to focus on the battle, but he couldn’t help but notice that Ryuji was acting differently than usual that day. Yes, he tended to rely mostly on his physical strength and high endurance, but… His attacks and movements seemed too careless and impulsive, many times getting closer to the shadow than he should, and, more than once, taking a hit he could have easily avoided. Part of Goro wanted to ignore him and focus only on defeating that shadow, but, for some reason, he couldn’t.

When the shadow was about to hit Ryuji with a magic attack, Goro dashed in his direction, throwing himself against him. It was an ungraceful sight, but at least managed to get them both out of the way in time. Ryuji looked at him, seeming surprised.

“Stay focused, Skull!” said Goro.

“My bad!” answered Ryuji. “Thanks!”

Goro gestured dismissively, and the two of them faced the shadow again. This time, however, Goro was the one to act careless, charging against the shadow as soon as he saw an opening, only to realize halfway that it had anticipated his movement, turning its attention to him.

“Crow, watch out!”

He tried to avoid that attack, but the shadow moved faster, hitting him before his weapon could even reach it. He fell back with a pained groan, soon feeling a pair of hands help him sit. His vision was blurry, so he shut his eyes for a second, seeing Ryuji next to him as soon as he opened them again.

“Are you hurt?” asked Ryuji.

He shook his head: more than that, he was embarrassed by his own situation.

“Forgive me, I was careless.”

“It’s fine.” Ryuji reached for his pouch of items, offering one to Goro. “Here, it should help.”

Goro accepted it, and soon the pain caused by the attack subsided. Was that Ryuji’s way of returning the favor? Not that it mattered… They should be focusing on defeating that shadow. Soon they joined the fight again, using magic attacks to reach the shadow without getting close enough for it to harm them. It worked well for a while, until the shadow let out a loud roar, being involved by a bright light for a moment.

“It raised a barrier!” informed Futaba. “Magic attacks won’t work!”

Goro cursed under his breath. He turned to Ryuji, who was the closest one to him.

“We can’t get close to it like this,” he said. “We need something to distract it.”

Ryuji seemed to understand what he meant, nodding before looking at Akira’s direction.

“Joker! Panther!” he said. “Cover us!”

“Alright!” answered Akira.

“Be careful!” said Ann.

They took their guns, shooting the shadow, giving Goro and Ryuji the chance they needed to get closer, attacking it with their weapons at the same time. Yusuke and Haru soon joined them, hitting mercilessly until the shadow collapsed on the ground, changing back into the form of a middle-aged man. The group moved close to it, who lowered its head, dejected.

“ _I never wanted to get married…”_ it said. _“But she got pregnant, and I had no choice! I… I didn’t want to hurt them, but looking at them made me think of everything I was missing in my life.”_

“You think _she_ ruined your life?” Ryuji took a step in his direction, raising his voice. “Look at yourself! You hurt your family so much that your own kid wanted to die! I don’t care if you didn’t wanna get married, it still doesn’t give you the right to do what you did to them!”

His voice was trembling with anger. Before he could do something stupid and impulsive, like punching the shadow, Goro approached it too.

“If you hate being a husband and a father so much, then get a divorce,” he said. “Nothing excuses harming your wife and children as you did.”

The shadow stayed silent for a long while.

“ _I… suppose you’re right,”_ it said. _“I’ve been a terrible person to them… I was so ashamed of myself every time I hurt them, but it was so much easier to simply blame them for how miserable I felt. But… not anymore. I’ll do things the right way now. I’ll make sure they have a good life, away from me.”_

The shadow disappeared after giving Akira its treasure: a wedding photo. Silence filled that entire place, until Ann finally broke it.

“It’s over…”

“Yes.” Makoto let out a heavy sigh. “That was exhausting.”

“We should go back for today,” said Morgana. “We need to recover before we face another target.”

“I’m with Mona,” said Ryuji.

Morgana looked at him, forcing a playful smile while tapping his leg.

“See?” he said. “Even empty skull here agrees with me.”

“Shut it, stupid cat.”

“I’m not a cat!”

Even their bickering didn’t seem to carry the same energy as usual. Not that it surprised Goro: it was common for them to face situations like that in Mementos, but it didn’t make going through it again any easier. It was always terrible to see how cruel people could be—even for someone as rotten as himself.

Yet, something about that request had shaken him as no other did. He tried—and failed—not to think about it as they entered Morgana and made their way out of Mementos, back to Shibuya.

“I’ll message you later about the next meeting,” said Akira. “Make sure to rest for today.”

The others agreed, and, after briefly saying their goodbyes, they parted ways. Goro was about to walk to his platform when something stopped him. It was like a bubble of feelings inside his chest, growing bigger and thinner the more he thought about all that, getting closer to popping out. Aware that he was about to reach his limit, instead of crossing the turnstiles, Goro left the station, hastily walking the streets until he found an empty alleyway. He entered it, leaning his back against the wall and closing his eyes.

He wasn’t the kind of person who cried easily, and yet, the tears overcame him before he could even try to hold them back. Goro placed a hand over his face, then slowly slid down, sitting on the ground. _Shit…_ That was the worst situation possible. What if someone saw him? What should he even say if—

“Hey… Is everythin’ alright?”

That voice startled him. He raised his eyes, only to see Ryuji there, close to him. Goro quickly averted his gaze—while he was glad that it wasn’t someone else, he was still frustrated to let someone see him in such a pathetic state.

“Why are you here?” he muttered.

“I saw you comin’ this way,” answered Ryuji. “You didn’t look so well, so I got worried.”

Goro groaned to himself, wanting nothing but to tell Ryuji to mind his own business. He stopped himself in time, aware that it was his own fault that he ended up in that situation.

“It’s nothing. I just…”

He couldn’t find the words, so, instead, he tried to dry his tears with his sleeve.

“Sorry,” he said, “I didn’t mean to cause a scene.”

“Don’t apologize for somethin’ like this,” answered Ryuji. “It’s better than keepin’ it all inside your chest.”

Goro didn’t answer. Ryuji crouched beside him, looking at his face.

“Wanna talk about it?” he asked.

“Talk about what?”

His voice sounded harsher than he wanted, but Ryuji didn’t point it out.

“You know what,” said Ryuji. “I know it got to you too.”

“I said it’s nothing,” insisted Goro. “You don’t need to worry about it, so… You can just go home.”

“C’mon… I can’t leave you here like that.”

His persistence made Goro finally lose his patience, glaring at him.

“You don’t need to act so nice.” His voice was low, but cold. “I know you hate me.”

He regretted his words as soon as he said them. Ryuji opened his mouth, but didn’t say anything for quite a while.

“Wait here,” he said. “Be right back.”

Goro didn’t protest, watching Ryuji leave that alleyway. Part of him wondered where he was going, but his mind was soon flooded by the guilt. It was ironic—to say the least—that he wanted so much that people liked him, while he kept pushing them away whenever they tried. He thought things would be different after joining the Phantom Thieves, but… Even now, he was scared of getting close to them, only to be rejected later. Even Akira, despite all the effort he made to be friendly, Goro tried his best to keep at a safe distance.

He didn’t have much time to keep drowning in self-pity, since soon Ryuji came back, holding two milkshake cups in his hands. Goro looked at him, slightly curious, as he sat on the ground by his side.

“I didn’t know your favorite, so…” Ryuji showed him both cups. “Chocolate or strawberry?”

Goro looked from the cups to Ryuji, in slight disbelief.

“Why…?”

“Just choose one,” said Ryuji.

Unsure of what else to do, Goro let out a small sigh.

“Strawberry,” he murmured.

Ryuji smiled as he offered him the pink beverage.

“Here you go.”

Goro accepted it, hesitating a little before taking a sip. Ryuji did the same, allowing a minute to pass before breaking the silence again.

“Hey…” he murmured. “You don’t need to hide it, okay? It was pretty bad for me too. Even now, I can’t take it outta my mind.” He made a brief pause. “I was so angry at that guy for what he did to his family, but… also because he reminded me of my old man. He… did stuff like that to me and my mom too. I can’t forgive people like that, no matter what.”

He stopped for a moment, as if giving Goro a chance to speak. But Goro couldn’t say anything, and simply allowed the silence to grow between them.

“You don’t need to talk if you don’t want to,” added Ryuji. “But, if you change your mind, you can come to me anytime you need.”

Goro knew that, if he didn’t say anything, Ryuji would stand up and leave. While he told himself that it was exactly what he wanted, deep down, he knew it was a lie: he didn’t want to be alone, not at that moment. Without thinking, he parted his lips, needing a second to gather the courage to speak.

“I haven’t been in an abusive home,” he finally said. “But it was because of Shido that my mother died. He took her from me. My only family, my home… any chance I had at a normal childhood. Before I got so obsessed with my revenge, part of me wished to die too.” Saying those words made his heart feel heavy. “Seeing that shadow reminded me of all these feelings.”

He could feel Ryuji’s gaze on him for a while, before he finally heard his voice again.

“I’m so sorry.”

His words made Goro look at him.

“Why would you be?” he asked.

“‘Cause no one deserves to go through what you did.”

“Probably not.” A small, humorless laugh left Goro’s lips. “And yet, I almost became the same as him.”

“But you didn’t,” answered Ryuji. “You chose to be different, and that’s already much more than what most people do.”

Goro wanted to believe those words, but he couldn’t—at least not yet. He hated feeling insecure and vulnerable, and yet, after abandoning his revenge, those feelings became a constant presence within himself. It wasn’t as painful as that uncontrollable rage from before, but he had been angry for such a long time that he had already gotten used to it. As for these feelings, he still didn’t know how to deal with them. A bitter smirk took his face.

“You’re quite the nice guy, aren’t you?”

Ryuji shrugged, and Goro couldn’t tell if he hadn’t noticed the sarcasm on his voice, or simply chose to ignore it.

“Nah…” he said. “Guess I just needed to talk about it too.”

Once again, his reaction made Goro feel bad about his words. Before he could say anything else, however, Ryuji stood up, taking a step away from Goro while stretching his shoulders.

“You goin’ home from here?” he asked.

“Probably.”

“Take care of yourself, then.”

He forced a cheerful smile before starting to walk away. Goro’s stomach turned: that had definitely been his fault. Ryuji could be dense, but anyone would feel unwelcome after being treated like that.

“Wait…” said Goro. “I’ll repay you for the—”

“Don’t even think about it.” Ryuji waved at him, without looking in his direction. “See ya later.”

He left before Goro could say anything else. Goro wanted to punch himself, but managed to only take a sip of his milkshake instead. That had been the first time he opened up a little to someone else, and he still managed to ruin it. Maybe that was his problem: he had this bad tendency to blame others for everything, even when he was the one at fault.

He lowered his gaze to his cup, and a bittersweet feeling took his chest. Despite everything, Ryuji had still been kind to him. From the entire group, he was probably the last person Goro expected to have beside him in a moment like that—and yet, the sweet taste of that milkshake was enough to cheer him up a little bit.

* * *

Neither of then mentioned that brief conversation on the next meeting of the Phantom Thieves. When it was over, as usual, the group made their way together to Shibuya, then each went their own way. Before Ryuji could leave, Goro approached him, managing to hide his slight nervousness behind a composed mask.

“Sakamoto,” he said. “Can I talk to you for a moment?”

Ryuji furrowed his brow at the request.

“What is it?”

Goro silently hoped that Ryuji wouldn’t react badly to the situation, especially after what had happened on the previous day. He showed him the bag he was carrying, with the logo of a small tea shop.

“I bought two pieces of cake earlier,” he said. “Which do you prefer? Chocolate or strawberry?”

Ryuji blinked, seeming confused. Then, to Goro’s surprise, a small laugh left his lips.

“Chocolate, for sure,” he said.

“I thought so.”

Despite the relief brought by that reaction, Goro still hesitated before asking his next question.

“Do you mind if we eat it together?”

“No problem.”

He wasn’t expecting such a positive response—probably thanks to the many failures he had imagined in his head on the previous night. Thanks to his experience acting as the Detective Prince, however, his pleasant smile didn’t falter as he accompanied Ryuji to the food court, where they bought their drinks and took their seats to eat. In a habitual gesture, Goro took a picture of his slice of cake, while Ryuji didn’t waste any time before eating it.

“Man, this is really good!” he said.

“I know,” answered Goro. “That’s one of my favorite places to eat. It’s very peaceful too, so I enjoy visiting it whenever I can.”

Ryuji nodded, glancing at the logo on the small box beside him.

“I don’t remember the name,” he said. “Where is it?”

Goro explained to him how to find the place, and Ryuji commented that he would probably buy a cake for his mother one of those days; he asked for Goro’s opinion on a good one, and he listed a few of his favorites. The words came easily, to his surprise… Honestly, he wasn’t expecting a conversation with Ryuji Sakamoto—someone so different from himself—to flow that well.

“I don’t think we ever had a proper conversation before,” commented Goro after a while.

Ryuji thought about it.

“Yeah…” he agreed. “I don’t think we did.”

Goro stayed silent for a moment, searching for the right words before proceeding.

“Before I forget about it, I wanted to thank you for yesterday.” He lowered his voice. “And also apologize… I was quite rude to you.”

Ryuji dismissed the apology with a gesture.

“Nah, it’s fine.” He said with his mouth still full of cake. “I kinda panicked back then too… Didn’t really know what I should do, or if I was just makin’ things worse by bein’ around.”

“I understand.” Goro hesitated a little before offering him a smile. “The milk-shake was really good, though.”

“Right?” Ryuji returned the smile. “Glad you liked it.”

He sounded nothing but honest, and that reaction made Goro feel at ease. For the first time, he felt like he could understand what the other Phantom Thieves saw in Ryuji: he could be loud, short-tempered, and quite dense at times… But he was also genuinely kind, even to someone like Goro.

It made him want to know him better, even if that thought was a silly one.

* * *

He thought it was silly of him to want to grow closer to Ryuji, and yet, a few days later, they were once again spending time together after leaving Mementos. The first invitation came from Ryuji, but the next one came from Goro, until they got comfortable enough to just message each other at any time, and spend the afternoon together for no special reason.

Being with Ryuji made him feel calm, as if he didn’t need to hide his thoughts and feelings behind a mask—and, if he tried to, Ryuji would notice and scold him for it. In the space of a few weeks, Goro already felt closer to him than he had ever felt to anyone in a long time—probably since his mother’s death.

Then, before he knew it, it happened. He wasn’t sure which of them was the one to move first, but when they kissed, it happened as naturally as their conversations did. Being with Ryuji just felt… _right_ to him. Not long before, he would probably have thought of that relationship as something doomed to fail, but now he felt like their many differences—instead of standing between them like a wall—complemented them, enhancing their strengths and shielding their weaknesses.

They didn’t tell the others about their relationship, though. With everything that was going on in the Metaverse, Goro never found a good moment to mention it; besides, Ryuji never touched that subject either, and Goro didn’t know how he felt about it. If that was something that would make him uncomfortable, he would rather keep their relationship a secret until Ryuji felt confident enough to assume it.

As important as that subject was for him, however, there was little space in his mind for it after they infiltrated Shido’s palace. Not only was he anxious to be finally facing that man, but he also got separated from his companions after facing Shido’s cognitive version of him. He was shot twice, but managed to survive thanks to the healing items he carried. Still, seeing his split image lying dead before him was nothing but a traumatizing experience.

Goro hoped he could reach his companions before they defeated Shido, but knew he was already too late when the palace started to crumble around him. He was disappointed, but told himself that it didn’t matter: it was done, and his only priority should be to get out of that place as quickly as he could, and make sure that the others were safe as well.

As soon as he reached the outside of the ship, he saw Ryuji lowering the lifeboat to the others, who quickly boarded it. Goro considered running to join them, but a bad feeling stopped him on his tracks. That place was collapsing way too fast… How was Ryuji going to…?

His body moved before he could even finish his thought, invoking Loki, holding onto it while it jumped from rubble to rubble, getting higher in the air until they finally reached Ryuji. Loki grabbed Ryuji’s body, then jumped away just a moment before that explosion. Goro closed his eyes, wondering for an instant if he had been too late, and they would be caught in the blast. When he opened his eyes again, however, he was lying on the ground beside Ryuji, who had his eyes shut. They were back in the real world.

Goro leaned over Ryuji, placing a hand on his cheek. Ryuji opened his eyes, and, when their gazes met, a surprised expression took his face.

“Goro…” he said. “I thought… I thought you were…”

Before he could hold himself back, Goro pulled him into a tight hug, burying his face on Ryuji’s shoulder.

“I thought I was going to lose you…” he muttered.

Ryuji returned that embrace, and his warmth made Goro finally start to relax: _he was alive… They both were._ He moved away, just enough to look at Ryuji’s face, then gently caressed his cheek as relief filled his chest. Ryuji touched his face with his fingertips, then tucked his hair behind his ear. Without another word, they both leaned in, kissing while embracing each other with more strength than necessary, as if both were equally scared of letting go.

What brought Goro’s mind back to reality was the sound of a surprised scream. He and Ryuji looked at its direction, seeing Ann there, with her eyes widened and both hands covering her mouth. The rest of the group came after her, equally taken aback by seeing them. Ann’s surprise slowly gave place to frustration, and she clenched her fists.

“I can’t believe you two!” she yelled. “We were crying because of you, while you were here, making out!”

“You two are the worst!” agreed Futaba, stomping her feet.

Before either of them could say anything, however, the two girls ran in their direction, throwing their arms around them. In no more than a second, the rest of the group did the same: Akira got himself between the two, hugging their necks while crying loudly; Yusuke was more discreet, placing his hands on their shoulders while Morgana jumped from one lap to the other, rubbing his head on them in an affectionate way. Makoto and Haru searched their bodies for injuries, and, without finding any, joined the others in that big, messy hug.

If anything, those spontaneous gestures of concern and affection surprised Goro even more than almost dying twice on the same day.

* * *

They decided to spend that night together at the Leblanc, not only to tend to each others’ injuries, but also because no one there wanted to be alone after everything that happened. It had been a difficult night for all of them, in many different ways.

While the girls helped them with their wounds, Akira and Yusuke went to the kitchen to prepare dinner. The smell of curry soon reached upstairs, making Goro’s stomach growl until Akira finally called them to eat. Goro was more than used to Leblanc’s coffee and curry, but they seemed especially delicious that night.

“I’ll take care of the dishes,” said Akira when they were finished. “You guys can go upstairs, and choose the movie.”

Ryuji looked at him, standing up despite his injured leg.

“I’ll help—”

In a second, Akira was beside him, poking his chest with his finger.

“You’ll go upstairs and rest your leg!” Said Akira in an angry tone, before turning to face Yusuke. “Yusu, can you help him move?”

“Leave it to me.”

Without giving Ryuji any time to protest, Yusuke placed an arm around his torso, helping him go upstairs, soon being followed by the others. Goro, who was still finishing his coffee, laughed.

“You have an aggressive way to care about others,” he said.

Akira pouted as he started to wash the dishes.

“If I’m not aggressive about it, Ryuji won’t listen to me,” he said.

“I can relate to that.”

“Oh, I’m sure you can.”

He glanced at Goro over his shoulder, an amused smile taking his lips. _Oh, here it comes…_

“But I seriously can’t believe you two…” proceeded Akira with a heavy sigh. “To think you would ditch us, and leave us there, crying and miserable, only to get all lovey-dovey behind our backs…”

He shook his head in disbelief, not even trying to hide his grin.

“You weren’t really surprised, were you?” asked Goro.

“No way…” Akira laughed while gesturing with his hand. “You may be good at hiding your feelings, but Ryuji is too honest for that.” He made a small pause. “Not that you didn’t give him some loving stares now and then too.”

Goro took another sip of his coffee, trying to hide his slight embarrassment. He tried to be as discreet as possible, but he frequently caught himself staring at Ryuji, or getting closer to him than a friend probably would—unless that friend was Akira, of course.

“Well, it’s not like I had a reason to hide it from you,” he said. “I just didn’t want Ryuji to feel uncomfortable about it.”

“I’m pretty sure he was worried about you too.” This time, Akira sounded a little more serious. “I can only imagine the problems your relationship would bring with the media, your fans, and all that.”

Those words weighed in Goro’s heart: he should have considered that possibility.

“It doesn’t matter anymore…” he said. “With Shido gone, I’m quitting my job as a detective.”

Akira considered it briefly before looking at Goro.

“That’s for the best, I think.”

“I’m glad you agree,” said Goro. “I don’t want any connection to that man and my old life anymore. I want to be a better person… Someone worthy of the second chance you all gave me.”

Akira didn’t answer immediately. He stopped washing the dishes, approaching Goro with a small smile on his face.

“It’s good to hear you say that,” he said. “Not that I ever doubted you, it’s just that… You were so closed when you first joined us. I knew there was a lot going through your mind, but I could never find a way to approach you.”

His words surprised Goro a little.

“Is that so?”

Akira nodded.

“So, I’m really happy that we’re talking about this.” His smile widened. “It makes me feel like we really are friends now.”

Goro couldn’t hold back a smile at those words.

“To be honest, I didn’t think I deserved to have friends after everything I did,” he admitted. “But now I’m glad I joined you. For the first time in I don’t even know how long, I’m content with where I am, and I don’t want to lose it.”

He made a pause, a warm feeling taking his chest.

“I suppose Ryuji had this effect on me,” he added in a low voice.

Akira observed him, and, in an instant, the playful grin was back on his face.

“Aww, Goro…” he said. “You’re so in love! It’s adorable!”

Goro groaned, already regretting his previous words.

“Akira, please…”

“You two are so cute!”

“Stop it.”

“But you—”

“Akira.”

Akira stopped talking, puffing his cheeks in protest.

“Fine, fine…” he said, moving back to the sink to finish washing the dishes. “I’ll repress my feelings so you won’t get embarrassed.”

“I appreciate it.”

Goro finished his coffee, then brought the empty cup to the sink.

“Are you finished?” asked Akira, taking the cup from his hands. “Alright, I’ll be done in a minute. You can wait upstairs, with the others.”

“Can I help?” asked Goro, after a moment of hesitation.

This time, Akira didn’t refuse it. With the two of them working together, soon the dishes were clean and back in place. They went upstairs, finding Akira’s bed already surrounded by covers and blankets—some of them borrowed from Futaba’s bedroom. It was a mess, but at least there was enough room for the entire group to sleep. Without thinking much, Goro approached Ryuji, who was sitting on Akira’s bed, briefly kissing his face.

“Did you choose the movie already?” asked Akira.

“Yes.” Ann smiled as she raised an old copy of Cinderella III. “Your favorite.”

Akira crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes at her.

“Are you judging me?” he asked.

“No… It’s cute.”

“That doesn’t sound like a compliment, but whatever.” He looked at Goro and Ryuji, briefly gesturing in their direction. “Well, the bed is yours for today. You’re the MVPs of the night, after all.”

“Yeah!” Futaba raised both arms in the air. “Our knights in shining armor!”

“Hell yeah!” answered Ryuji with a similar excitement. “I’m feelin’ really special today!”

“I want a place in it too!” said Morgana.

“Me too!” added Futaba. “I’m tiny, so you can’t complain.”

Ryuji’s smile faded into a grumpy face.

“Well…” he sighed. “I guess we ain’t _that_ special, after all…”

“Seems like it,” agreed Goro.

“Oh, stop complaining!” Futaba patted Ryuji’s shoulder. “I’ll even let you two kiss during the movie. I’ll look the other way.”

“Thank you for your kindness.”

“What won’t I do for my friends’ happiness?” She placed a hand over her chest, letting out a dramatic sigh. “I’m such a kind soul…”

Being so casually called her “friend” made Goro’s chest feel warm. It was much more than he ever expected—and probably much more than he deserved—but it still made him happy to feel like part of their group. Their _family_.

He embraced Ryuji’s waist, closing his eyes as he felt Ryuji’s hand on his hair, hoping that simple moment could last forever.

**Author's Note:**

> Cinderella 3 is a great movie and you can't change my mind.
> 
> Also, I'll never get tired of rewriting the ship scene to make the PTs give Ryuji (and Goro) all the hugs they deserved.
> 
> Thanks for reading, I hope you liked it!


End file.
